I often find myself on set with my $120,000 Steadicam package when a PA, Camera Intern or Extra asks me how much it all costs. After telling them, like clockwork, they usually tell me how they or a friend of theirs is building their own steadicam. I try to explain that there is a world [...]

That is the question! It’s very easy to get yourself in way over your head with loans. Salesmen will tell you “all you need to get is one job a month to pay for the rig.” Of course this isn’t exactly true. They aren’t taking into account the additional cost for accessories, maintenance, and of [...]

One of my earliest experiences as an young aspiring operator came when I was asked to operate steadicam on an NYU thesis film. They were shooting on 35mm, and that really excited me. Up to this point I had only operated with video cameras, and outside of the Steadicam Operators Association Workshop, I had never [...]

The question is inevitable. And the fact is that most of us are not qualified to negotiate our rate. This is why there are agents. But for the majority of steadicam ops…representation is not in the cards. So what is your rate? I can’t claim to be an expert on this subject, but I have [...]